Research points to Latino/a parents as an important source of motivation and support for high achieving Latino/a students who are the first in their families to go to college (Arellano & Padilla, 2006; Gandara, 1982; 1994; Hurtado & Sinha, 2006; Zalaquett, 2005); however, very little is known about their experience as they parent children whose educational paths are so different from their own. Cultural values such as collectivism and familism play a unique role in the level of connection between these parents and their children (Suarez-Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, 1995), creating dynamics that merit exploration. This dissertation qualitatively examines how seven Latino/a parents of first-generation college students pursuing a PhD expressed the parenting characteristics outlined in Parent Development Theory (Mowder, 2005). Furthermore, this study explores how these parents experienced their daughters' higher education journey. Moustakas' (1994) transcendental phenomenology was utilized in analyzing parents' voices. The textural and structural descriptions of major and minor themes provided the essence of the parents' experience. Example of themes are: "Pero la Apoyo - Uncertainty and Support for the PhD", "Siempre Juntos - High Levels of Interaction", and "Amor Compasivo - Distance, Pain and Sacrifice". Recommendations include support for pre-doctoral preparation initiatives, co-curricular innovations, and the exploration of the impact of modern technologies on the communication between parents and their children while in college.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ucf.edu/oai:stars.library.ucf.edu:etd-6385 |
| Date | 01 January 2017 |
| Creators | Toro, Natalia |
| Publisher | STARS |
| Source Sets | University of Central Florida |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Electronic Theses and Dissertations |
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